INSPIRING BOOKS BY WOMEN ON OUR RADAR RIGHT NOW

As the temperatures in most climates drop into winter, it's the perfect time of year to curl up by the fire with a good book. If some of 2018's best reads escaped you, we've rounded up 6 of the best on our radar right now. Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash.

1

BECOMMING, MICHELLE OBAMA

The former First Lady, Michelle Obama's memoir is released in hardback on November 13th. Chronicling the experiences that have shaped her—from her childhood on the South Side of Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and, of course, her time in The Whitehouse, we can't to devour this one. Image: @michelleobama

Lessons: My Path to a Meaningful Life, gisele

Since Gisele's first semi-naked appearance in Alexander McQueen's fashion show where she was nicknamed "The Body," the Brazilian model has always maintained a Goddess-like stature. In Lesssons she's refreshingly honest that "the life I've lived in public has very little connection to who I really am." Sharing key takeaways from a childhood spent barefoot in small-town Brazil, to an internationally successful career, motherhood and marriage to quarterback Tom Brady, it's a wonderfully open account into what's created true connection and meaning in her life. Image @Gisele

Good and Mad: How Women's Anger Is Reshaping America, Rebecca Traister

Rebecca Traister writes about women in politics, media, and entertainment from a feminist perspective and it's fascinating to read her insight on 2018, and the power of a woman's anger. One our favorite quotes: “In the United States, we have never been taught how noncompliant, insistent, furious women have shaped our history and our present, our activism and our art. We should be.”

The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters, Priya Parker

What separates a joyful wedding from one that feels generic? Why is one family dinner unifying, while another one feels awkward? People and their chemistry play a big part. Distilling the key elements that inspire a good time in any group number above 3, conflict resolution specialist Priya Parker (M.I.T. and Harvard Kennedy School alum), who has overseen peace processes in the Arab world and facilitated race relations on American college campuses, shares transformative insights and inspiration on our most basic human need— making relating to others more meaningful.

DARE TO LEAD, BRENE BROWN

In her latest book Dare to Lead, research professor and TED Talk extraordinaire, Brene Brown challenges the notion that leadership is about titles, status, and wielding power and instead advocates a heart-centred approach that sees a leader is anyone who takes responsibility for recognizing the potential in people and ideas, and who has the courage to develop that potential. One of our favorite quotes to live by? "Clear is kind. Unclear is unkind.”

The Opposite of Hate: A Field Guide to Repairing Our Humanity, Sally Kohn

Famously "nice", Sally Kohn is a liberal commentator on CNN, formerly at Fox News, who developed a reputation for finding a way to communicate respectfully with her political opponents. But over the last few years she found herself becoming increasingly polarized and angry, despite her best intentions. The Opposite of Hate is her attempt to understand where the root of our prejudices come from and why they make us act the way they do. Introducing the reader to terrorists, white supremacists, and even some of her own Twitter trolls, it's a surprisingly heart-opening read.